Do you love or hate the wispy, abstract facade of 24H-Architecture's Nieuw Leyden House? Designed to resemble a "canyon" in keeping with a technique employed to flood the building with plenty of natural light, the facade is either a playful excess or an absurd waste - depending on each person's taste. Restricted by space, these two homes are built around a central courtyard with a "canyon wall" that flushes in light.

Although there were no permitting restrictions for any of the individual houses, and 24H-Architecture had full reign to build freely, the streets in this Leiden neighborhood are chock full of buildings leaving little space for expansion. Instead of forcing small block houses, they created a meandering canyon effect by wrapping the houses around the courtyard with a transparent boundary wall. For privacy, or during the evenings, this canyon wall can also be closed.

The architects used certified wood in the building’s construction, but critics might still question the facade. Though we find it playful and not too wasteful, certain readers over at Arch Daily were not so convinced. One person likened the projected pieces, which are constructed from Corten steel, to “spaghetti straps.”